Senator Says US Midterm Losses for Republicans Reflect Public Anger Over Trump Policies

QUETTA (Online) – Senator Muhammad Abdul Qadir, Chairman of the Senate Standing Committee on Defence Production, has said that the Republican Party’s defeat in the US midterm elections is a clear electoral response to President Donald Trump’s policies, the prolonged war with Iran, inflation and growing public unrest.

According to him, the Democrats have won majorities in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, strengthening their position in the next Congress. They have also achieved important victories in states traditionally considered Republican, including Texas.

Senator Muhammad Abdul Qadir said the Iran war and the resulting rise in energy prices had deepened the economic hardship of American people, and this was reflected in the election results. In his view, the message of the results is that people want release from constant war, rising expenses and economic uncertainty.

He said the consequences of these results would not be confined to US domestic politics and could also affect the situation in the Middle East. He said a Democratic majority in Congress could increase political pressure on the Trump administration over its war policies, its military operations against Iran and its unconditional support for Israel.

However, he said the practical effects of this pressure would depend on the decisions of the new Congress and the conduct of the US administration.

Senator Muhammad Abdul Qadir also referred to the situation in Israel, saying that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s political difficulties and the deadlock in government formation were also important for the region. He said that if new leadership emerged in Israel and anti-war political pressure grew in the United States, diplomatic opportunities could arise for negotiations with Iran, peace in Palestine and the reduction of tensions on other fronts in the region, including Lebanon.

The Committee Chairman stressed that lasting peace required practical changes in US and Israeli policies, meaningful negotiations with Iran, respect for the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people and respect for the sovereignty of regional countries. He said political changes could become a real hope for peace only if they led to concrete steps towards a ceasefire, the protection of civilians and the peaceful resolution of disputes.

Meanwhile, Chaudhry Naeem Kareem, Focal Person of the Prime Minister’s Youth Programme and senior leader of the Pakistan Muslim League, said in a statement issued from the PML Balochistan liaison office on 6 November, Martyrs’ Day of Jammu and Kashmir, that 6 November 1947 was the darkest day in the history of Jammu and Kashmir, when the forces of the Dogra Maharaja and miscreants killed Muslims in Jammu.

He said the sacrifices of the Martyrs of Jammu had strengthened the foundations of the Kashmir freedom movement, and that the Kashmir issue remains alive today because of them. He said Pakistan had always supported the Kashmiri people.

He called for a just solution to the Kashmir dispute in line with the United Nations resolutions and the aspirations of the Kashmiri people. He urged the international community to take notice of the human rights situation in Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir and to play a role in securing the right of self-determination for Kashmiris.